Lok Satta

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Overview

FNSt Partners’ Meet11–12 March, 2005, New Delhi

LOK SATTAPeople Power

Lok Satta

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Mission

To promote peaceful, democratic transformation

of Indian Governance process and enable India

to achieve full potential through good governance

Lok Satta

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Lok Satta’s Structure

Primary Units (2900)

Intermediary Units (520)

District Units (23)

Apex Unit

Lok Satta

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Key Premises

Crisis is systemic

Most players are victims of a vicious cycle

Change of players not enough

Change of rules of the game needed

Values are not the issue

Institutions are the key

Resources are not a problem

The way they are deployed is the key

Focus on governance process and not oncontentious policies

Lok Satta

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Lok Satta’s Goals

Comprehensive electoral reforms

Empowerment of local governments

Instruments of accountability

Speedy and efficient justice

Lok Satta

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Electoral Reforms

Process Improvements

– Preventing polling irregularities

– Arresting and reversing criminalization of politics

– Checking abuse of unaccountable money power inelections

System Improvements

– Political party reform

– Proportional representation

– Direct election of Chief Executive at the State level with clear separation of powers

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Survey of Electoral Rolls

Lok Satta took up detailed field survey of voter

registration defects

Survey – 1999 elections: 56 rural and urban polling

station (approximately 56,000 voters)

Errors: 15% errors in rural areas

44.8% in urban areas

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Survey – 2004 elections.

Sample Size -110 rural and urban polling stations

Population of more than 1,00,000

Survey Area

No. of Constituencies

No. of Polling

Stations

Total No. of Voters

Errors of Commission

Errors of Omission

Total No. of Errors-Omission and Commission

NoAs % of total

Voters

RURAL 34 68 68110 1496(2.2) 1996(3.0) 3492 5.1

URBAN 21 39 38915 2099(5.4) 2782(7.1) 4881 12.5

TOTAL 55 107 107025 3595(3.3) 4778(4.5) 8373 7.8

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Survey of Electoral Rolls

Lok Satta, along with other friends, is planning to

take up a pilot project for voter list verification and

corrections with citizen participation in a few

constituencies in Bangalore, Mumbai and

Hyderabad

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Campaign Against Criminalization

1999 Election Watch – Post-nomination

No significant impact on the voting behavior aslocal factors such as caste etc., play a major role

2004 Election Watch – Pre-nomination

Aim: To restrain political parties from nominatingpersons with criminal background

Total potential candidates with criminal record : 51

Out of the 51 potential candidates, only 29 werenominated

Out of 29, only 11 candidates were elected

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Campaign Against Criminalization

Generated a fierce debate in the state and for almost3 weeks, the entire political discourse was centeredaround this issue

Political parties were forced to ditch certain candidatesdue to the intense public pressure and media focus

But still some of the truly established candidates whohave struck deep political roots continued to remain inthe fray as the parties cannot contest in thoseconstituencies without them

Election Watch activities have also been carried out inMaharashtra Elections

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Unaccounted Money Power

Recent Developments

– The Sept 2003 amendments are far-reaching.India has one of the best funding laws

Key provisions

– Full tax exemption to donors (individual orcorporates)

– Mandatory disclosure of all contributions of Rs20,000 or more

– Free air time on all electronic media – private orpublic – to recognized parties and candidates

– Removal of loopholes under sec 77 of RPA

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Funding Law – Unfinished Agenda

Free media time not implemented as rules are notframed

No incentive to disclose, except tax exemption todonor. Severe penalties on donor for non-disclosurewill be salutary. No donor will risk jail term forundisclosed contributions

Compulsory statutory auditing of party accountsmust be provided for

Election Commission to be the final authority fordetermination of compliance

Impact of LOK SATTA at the National Level

Lok Satta was instrumental in putting Electoral

Reforms on the national agenda

Lok Satta’s surveys influenced Election Commission

to accept in principle to make post office a nodal

agency for voter registration

Effectively lobbied for political funding legislation

Impact of LOK SATTA at the National Level

Election Watch made disclosures a dominant publicissue leading to litigation and judicial verdicts

– Arresting growth of criminal elements in politics

– AP – lower percentage of politicians with criminalcharges

Spearheading the National Campaign for ElectoralReforms eg., the recent candidate disclosure issue

Emerged as a leading think-tank on governancereforms in the country

Resulted in a viable National Campaign for Electoraland Governance Reforms

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Key Systemic Reforms

Proportional Representation

Clear separation of powers

Political party regulation

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Identify reform groups and support

Focus on key goals and mobilize public opinion and

bring pressure

eg: disclosure, funding, alternative model for women’s

representation, Post Office as nodal agency

National communication campaign

Approaches to National Campaign

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“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,

committed individuals can change the world.

Indeed it is the only thing that ever did”

- Margaret Mead